---
title: Queen of the Night Detail
author: wikipedia user: Fae
source: https://www.worldhistory.org/image/2315/queen-of-the-night-detail/
format: machine-readable-alternate
license: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)
updated: 1970-01-01
---
# Queen of the Night Detail
_Authored by wikipedia user: Fae_
## Image File
[](https://www.worldhistory.org/uploads/images/2315.jpg)
## Image Caption
A detail from The [Queen of the Night](https://www.worldhistory.org/article/658/the-queen-of-the-night/) (also known as the `Burney Relief’) relief, a high relief terracotta plaque of baked clay, measuring 19.4 inches (49.5 cm) high, 14.5 inches (37 cm) wide, with a thickness of 1.8 inches (4.8 cm) depicting a naked winged woman flanked by owls and standing on the backs of two lions. It originated in southern [Mesopotamia](https://www.worldhistory.org/Mesopotamia/) (modern day Iraq) most probably in [Babylonia](https://www.worldhistory.org/babylon/), during the reign of [Hammurabi](https://www.worldhistory.org/hammurabi/) (1792-1750 BCE) as it shares qualities in craftsmanship and technique with the famous diorite stele of Hammurabi’s laws and also with the piece known as `The [god](https://www.worldhistory.org/God/) of [Ur](https://www.worldhistory.org/ur/)’ from that same period. The woman depicted is acknowledged to be a goddess as she wears the horned headdress of a deity and holds the sacred rod-and-ring symbol in her raised hands. Who the winged woman is, however, has not been agreed upon though scholars generally believe her to be either [Inanna](https://www.worldhistory.org/Inanna/) ([Ishtar](https://www.worldhistory.org/ishtar/)), Lilith, or [Ereshkigal](https://www.worldhistory.org/Ereshkigal/). (The British Museum, London)
## Cite This Work
### APA
Fae, w. u. (2014, February 19). Queen of the Night Detail. *World History Encyclopedia*.
### Chicago
Fae, wikipedia user:. "Queen of the Night Detail." *World History Encyclopedia*, February 19, 2014. .
### MLA
Fae, wikipedia user:. "Queen of the Night Detail." *World History Encyclopedia*, 19 Feb 2014, .
## License & Copyright
[Original image](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Burney_Relief_owl_and_lion.jpg) by [**wikipedia user: Fae**](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Burney_Relief_owl_and_lion.jpg). Submitted by [Mark Cartwright](https://www.worldhistory.org/user/markzcartwright/ "User Page: Mark Cartwright"), published on 19 February 2014. The copyright holder has published this content under the following license: [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0deed.en). This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon a work even for commercial reasons, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms. When republishing on the web a hyperlink back to the original content source URL must be included. Please note that content linked from this page may have different licensing terms.